PolymerBob found some decent photos of Caroline at the Olympic Media Summit. And I’ve added photos from the 2007 International Counter Match and the 2008 and 2009 Golden West Championships. Click the here to see them in full view!

Lynn Rutherford has published her article about Caroline. You can read the entire article here. The interview was at Champs Camp.

(08/30/2010) - Caroline Zhang is no Stepford skater.

The 17-year-old Californian, whose dreams of competing at the Vancouver Olympics were derailed by an 11th-place finish at the 2010 AT&T U.S. Figure Skating Championships, tells it like it is.

“Last season was not my idea of fun,” she said.

If you don’t like something, change it, and that’s just what Zhang, a former wunderkind who won the 2007 world junior title and 2009 U.S. bronze medal, did.

She moved from longtime mentor Li Mingzhu to Tammy Gambill, a Riverside, Calif., coach known for instilling strong jump technique in her pupils. She enlisted David Wilson, choreographer to the stars, for a more expressive free skate.

In short, she took a good, hard look at herself and her skating.

“Last year, I felt like I was well-prepared for nationals,” Zhang said, pausing for a second to consider what went wrong.

“I have to trust myself more, be more confident. This season I’m back to skating for myself. [Last season] there was the pressure of the Olympics; when that was off, I was happy I skated decent programs at Four Continents — not my best, but decent.” [Zhang won bronze at that event, behind Japanese skaters Mao Asada and Akiko Suzuki].

Zhang is well aware of the criticisms of her skating — her speed, the unusually high “kick” entrance to toe jumps — and she and Gambill are addressing them.

“Oh, I’m working on it,” she said. “Everybody says I have a high kick. I know it, too. I’m changing it, and I hope everyone notices it. I know I’m happy about it.

“I’m fixing the edge [take-off on the triple Lutz], too, and I’m adding speed going into my double Axel.”

Like many intelligent, strong-willed people, Zhang — who is renowned for spins, especially the signature “pearl,” and the flexibility and extension of her spirals — hasn’t always been known as an ideal pupil. Last season’s disappointment seems to have snapped her into focus.

“I think nationals was a lot more motivating than anything else,” she said. “Not making the [2010] team — and thinking about possibly not making the 2014 team, unless I made some changes — that’s really pushed me.”

Gambill, who also coaches Junior Grand Prix competitors Ricky Dornbush and Lindsay Davis, says Zhang has been receptive to a new approach.

“Caroline is much more determined this year,” Gambill said. “She knows how much she gets out [of training] is determined by how much she puts into it. She’s grown up, mature, and a delight to work with — most of the time.”

About the aforementioned kick, Gambill said, “I can already see improvement; it’s a big step.”

The two are also working to add speed to Zhang’s programs.

“Oh, absolutely every day, it’s a priority,” Gambill said. “I’m always pushing her.”

While Gambill is her primary coach, Zhang also works regularly with Galina Barinova, a former Bolshoi ballerina who has also worked with Evan Lysacek, and veteran coach Sondra Holmes, who works with many of Gambil’s pupils. The skater’s family recently moved from Brea to Corona, nearer to Gambil’s rink.

“I like have a team behind me; I think it makes me work a lot harder,” Zhang said. “I think there’s been a big improvement.”

With Wilson and Tom Dickson, the Colorado Springs-based choreographer who crafted her short program, the skater is focusing on ramping up her performance quality.

“I wanted to try something new; probably in the past, I haven’t expressed myself enough [on the ice],” she said.

Zhang got her programs — a short to Piazzolla’s “Libertango” and free to “Cello concerto in B Minor” by Dvorak — done in June and July.

“Tom Dickson played the [Tango] for me early on, and then he told me to listen to other [pieces], but I still picked it,” she said. “It’s very different from other things I’ve done.

“And I love working with David Wilson; he’s really helping me with the transitions, and expressing the program more.”

Another sign of dedication: Zhang is already thinking ahead to Sochi 2014. Home schooled, she enters her senior year of high school this fall and took SAT prep classes over the summer. But while she may apply to colleges this fall, she’s uncertain of when she will attend.

“I’m just not sure about college yet,” she said. “I want to go to a good school, but I want to stay in [eligible competition] until 2014. My sister [Yang Yang] went to MIT and I saw how much hard work something like that is. So I might hold off, maybe take a few classes, and then [go full time] after 2014.”

Zhang is slated to compete at NHK Trophy and Skate America this fall.

Hi guys. I’ve just reactivated the gallery. If you encounter any problems with it, kindly contact me here. Thanks!

Also, Ice Network reported that Mirai Nagasu was not able to perform her programs in front of the USFSA panel because of her injury. Take care, Mirai!

Hi guys. I’ve taken the gallery down for a while because of the problems I’ve been encountering nowadays. Don’t worry, if we found new pictures, we’ll post links to them while our gallery isn’t available yet. And please stay tuned for another Champs Camp update!

Ice Network correspondent Lynn Rutherford (@LynnRutherford) has posted a tweet about Caroline:

Caroline Zhang excited about new Lutz technique: “I had a big kick [on my Lutz], and people notice it, so I hope they’ll notice the change.”

Caroline is optimistic about her new jump technique. We hope it works well for her too!

Watch out for our coverage for tomorrow’s Champ’s Camp! We’ll bring you the juiciest details on Caroline’s first public appearance of the season!

After a long wait, Caroline has revealed her music for the 2010-2011 Skating Season. She’ll be skating to “Libertango” by Astor Piazzolla in her short program and to “Cello Concerto in B minor” by Antonin Dvorak for her long program.

With that, our Programs page is also updated!

Sad news. Caroline confirmed on her Facebook account that she won’t be competing at Golden West Championships, a competition in her home club. During her years with Mingzhu Li, she has always competed  at Golden West. This might be one of the strategies implemented by Tammy Gambill for Caroline’s improvement. Hope we’ll hear from her soon!

Caroline Zhang Online is now accepting affiliates!

There are two types of affiliates for this site, one is the Site Affiliate and the other is the Fanlisting Affiliate.

For standard fan sites, you can apply to be a Site Affiliate here.

For fanlistings, you can apply to b a Fanlisting Affiliate here.

We are looking forward to a great partnership with you!

Sorry for this late update. I have not given you any info on 2010 Champs Camp. So, here it is, taken from the USFSA site:

2010 Champs Camp

Who: All athletes assigned to a 2010 Grand Prix Series event

Where: Colorado Springs Olympic Training Center

When: Aug. 26-29, 2010 ***New Dates*** (Champs Camp will no longer be held in June.)

This year’s Champs Camp will be performance based. Athletes will perform their short program and free skate programs (ice dancing teams – short and free dances) in a simulated competition environment. The camp will also include technical feedback sessions, pre-participation physical exams, mental training sessions and a half-day seminar. Primary coaches of an athlete assigned to a 2010 Grand Prix Series event are required to attend. Further details will be made available after the announcement of the Grand Prix Series assignments.

General Information

Established in 2007, Champs Camp is an annual two-to-three-day conference attended by U.S. Figure Skating’s Team A and B Envelope athletes and their primary or secondary coaches. It traditionally has been held in the late spring or early summer at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. The purpose of the camp has been to familiarize the attendees with U.S. Figure Skating’s policies and procedures in order to enable them to create strategies for achieving their personal and performance goals leading into the 2010 Olympic Winter Games.Presentations have been given to the athletes and coaches on a variety of topics, including media training, anti-doping procedures, nutrition, international selections, planning and motivational suggestions. Presenters have included former national, World and Olympic competitors and coaches, ISU judges and technical specialists, U.S. Figure Skating committee chairs, United States Olympic Committee administrators, strength and conditioning experts, sports psychologists and members of U.S. Figure Skating’s Athlete High Performance Department.

An accomplished person in the sport of figure skating has been brought in each year to be the camp’s keynote speaker. These have included John Nicks (2007), Paul Wylie (2008), and Peter Carruthers and Dorothy Hamill (2009).

After Champs Camp, we may have an idea of what music Caroline will use on the coming season. Let’s just hope there are classified reports on the event.